Led by Ronald Tekener, the scientists of the JULES VERNE are investigating Sector Zero. The JULES VERNE is being supported by thousands of ships from the LFT and the new Galacticum. Sichu Dorksteiger is on board. She reports the emergence of huge Tryortan gullets at the Antares Reef that have spat out masses of hypercrystals since 1467 NGE until the disappearance of the sol system. The ejected hypercrystals were the same type as those discovered in the BASIS prior to its kidnapping. Tekener is fascinated by the Ator. The equally beautiful and brilliant woman gets closer to him than he would like, and rattles him more than once. A visit to the White Hall of the JULES VERNE brings no new insights. Instead Tekener and Dorksteiger are brought to the limits of their ability to deal with it. Something seems to be wrong with the room.

A short time later Tekener receives a coded message from the former TLS Chief Noviel Residor. Tekener follows a winding route to Residor who is on a wandering planetoid near Barnard's Star, which is only six light-years away from the Sol systemís location. Residor had faked his own death years ago and since then been living in the station which contains a backup of NATHANís data banks. Residor willingly supplies the Smiler with some information from the data banks. The real reason for the contact, however, is that Residor had received messages about suspicious activities by the Augurs shortly before the disappearance of the Sol system. He gives all this information to Tekener, and on November 14, 1469 NGE Tekener returns to the Jules Verne. Then the wreck of a ship from the LFT Explorer fleet is located. It is the GEMMA FRISIUS, a spherical ship that had disappeared on September 2 in the border area of the Ordhogan Nebula - three days before the disappearance of the Sol system.

At that time the GEMMA FRISIUS ended up in the area of a six-dimensional energy shower. Something or someone named Petal 37 gradually took control of all the onboard systems and killed numerous crew members. An oily substance - presumably an intelligent being called Glue 37 - was discovered. Robots and other equipment that came into contact with this substance developed an uncanny life of their own and turned against the crew members. A massive, graceful looking structure in the approximate shape of a flower appeared near the ship and seized it. The crew had no way of resisting this...